Comcast has reached a "new agreement" with NBC Sports Bay Area and NBC Sports California that will see the channels "shift from Xfinity’s Popular TV package to the more expensive Ultimate TV tier." The price difference between the two packages is around $20 per month. Starting Tuesday, customers on the Popular TV tier "will lose access" to the RSNs. Comcast said the decision to place regional sports networks in the higher-priced tier is "largely driven by these escalating programming costs, particularly for sports broadcasting rights" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/13).
A Comcast spokesperson said that, according to the company’s data, "most subscribers who watch the regional sports networks are already on the Ultimate TV level." Boston-area RSNs NBC Sports Boston and NESN will move Tuesday along with Northern California’s channels. NBC Sports Philadelphia is still on the Popular tier "for the time being" (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 1/13).
